Photo/Illutration The sign of NTT headquarters in Tokyo’s Otemachi district (Ayumi Sugiyama)

Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corp. (NTT) will adopt remote working as its standard work style, in principle, from July 1, with employees no longer being required to reside within commuting distance of the office.

About 30,000 employees of its group companies who work in departments where teleworking is already introduced will be eligible at first. The firm plans to expand the operation later.

NTT and major subsidiaries such as NTT Docomo Inc. and NTT Data Corp. will decide which departments will begin remote work, in principle.

The firms currently require employees to reside within a two-hour commute of the office. However, that limitation will be removed and the firms will allow them to live anywhere in Japan.

Any visits to the office will be deemed business trips. The transportation costs will basically have no limits.

NTT said it will allow employees to commute by plane if they are required to come to the office. If necessary, the firm will even pay for their accommodation fees.

It also said it will cover the moving expenses for employees living away from their families when they move back to their homes.

The labor union agreed with NTT’s new plan.

The changes trace to the fall last year when NTT announced a plan to phase out a number of job transfers including those requiring workers to leave their families behind.

The firm said it will adopt remote working as its standard work style, which enables employees to choose where to work from.

At NTT, the holding company, 70 percent of its employees are working from home as of April.

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